Allstream Centre, May 29. Some 2,100 guests of the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies gathered for what promised to be a rollicking debate. The resolution: “The world is safer under Barack Obama.” James Carville opened with a zinger: “I’m staying at the Trump Tower. They asked for ID when I checked in, so I showed them my passport. They said they needed to see my long-form birth certificate.” Donna Brazile joined Carville in defending the commander-in-chief, while their right-leaning frenemies Karl Rove and Mike Huckabee begged to differ. The Republican side was victorious by a whisker (51 per cent to 49, by audience vote), but the big winners were co-chairs Paul and Judy Bronfman, who raked in $2.58 million for the centre.

Sure, our public servants are human beings, too—they have their foibles and they make mistakes. But the fun part about living in today’s world is that social media gives politicians the opportunity to share their mistakes in a very public way, with a very public record, all day long! Why, only five years ago a city councillor hell-bent on embarrassing himself had to go as far as getting drunk and unruly at a hockey game and shouting at people in the stands (what happened to that guy, anyway?). Now all it takes is a smartphone and 140 characters for a councillor to do something they’re guaranteed to regret. Case in point: John Parker’s “hot chicks” tweet at a Toronto Heritage event yesterday.

The long-anticipated G20 summit has arrived in Toronto and has not been an unblemished joy for the people who live here. Between expensive security and shuttered businesses and Karl Rove and riots, many Torontonians now wish the summit had gone elsewhere. What would soothe the city’s irritation at having to play host to the world’s rich and powerful? How about if the foreign delegates spent some fat cash while they’re in town partying? For the leaders of the G20, here is our guide to where they should leave their money as they breeze through Toronto.

Protesters are going to have an embarrassment of riches this weekend when the G20 circus rolls into town. What’s an anti-capitalist to do? Go after the current leaders or the man who helped put George W. Bush in power—twice? Karl Rove, former Bush adviser, will be addressing world leaders at Canada Christian College in Toronto this Friday as part of the G20 Summit for Faith and Business Leaders just as the G20 summit is in full swing. The contentious abortion funding issue will surely be a hot topic at the Rove gathering (tickets are a shockingly cheap $25), which means the protest groups out front will be a curious—and hopefully not bloodthirsty—blend of anarchists and pro-lifers.